14 Jul Parshas Matot-Masei
People think that what happens to them is the result of their travels. They say that since they traveled to such-and-such, and met with so-and-so, this and that happened to them. They attribute what happened to them, to where they went. Actually, because those things had to happen to them, it was destined for them to be in those places. As the Beis HaLevi said to someone who lost a lot of money in an investment, “It isn’t because you invested there that you lost money. It’s because you had to lose money that you thought to invest in there.”
The Baal Shem Tov zt’l taught that every Jew goes through forty-two in his lifetime (Degel Macheneh Efraim, Matos).
Rebbe Dovid of Lelov zt’l said that in the future everything that happened to a person will be explained to him; all his travels, and the reasons they had to be. Everything will be explained well. And then he will laugh that he was so concerned all the time, because then he will see that everything was only for his favor.
Rebbe Boruch of Mezhibuz zt’l taught, “who is wise will wait patiently until he understands the reason behind everything that happened to him.” “Then he will know that everything was Hashem’s kindness” (Tehillim 107:43).
There are circumstances in life that seem negative, and sometimes we feel that someone is trying to bury us alive, but ultimately we grow from all those hardships, as everything is planned soley for our benefit.
Rebbe Shlomo of Karlin zt’l explains, “One should never feel that the place where he is isn’t good.” Hashem arranged for you to be in that place and under those circumstances because He wants you to serve Him particularly from there. Recognize that the place you’re at is a good place.
There was a loyal servant, who loved the king and yearned to serve him. When the king asked him to travel to a certain country to run some errand for him over there, this servant was overjoyed and began getting ready for the voyage. But just as he came to the port, he saw the ship pulling out. He had come too late. He shouted to the sailors, “Come back. I want to go too.” He watched in agony, as the ship sailed away. “When will the next ship leave for that country?” he asked the porters. “There won’t be another boat for at least a half year.” The loyal servant will now have travel to that country by horseback, by camel, by walking, and by any other means necessary, so he could fulfill his mission. It would be a long arduous trip, he realized. And the worst part was his remorse for not having arrived at the port on time so he would reach his destination easily and quickly. He calculated that it would take him three months until he reaches that country. Throughout this long period of time, he will feel that he isn’t really serving the king; he’s just correcting an error Had the the servant known that the king initially asked the ship to leave early so that the servant would have to travel by foot, by camel, and by horseback, etc., and not by ship, the servant would rejoice with every step of his way, because he would know that he’s doing exactly what the king desires. The nimshal of this story is to recognize that also the hardships are destined by Hashem, and are part of the mission Hashem gave us. When we know that, we are happy even with those hardships, because with them we serve Hashem. They are not negative, and they are not deterrents from Hashem’s service. It is Hashem’s will that we serve Him amidst those trying situations. They are the essence of Hashem’s will.
The Mishnah (Makos 11) states, “The mothers of the cohanim gedolim would supply food and clothing [to the people in arei miklat] so the residents of arei miklat shouldn’t pray that their children die.” Those who kill by accident must remain in arei miklat until the cohen gadol dies. Therefore, they might pray for the cohen gadol’s demise, so they could go free. To prevent them from saying such prayers, the mother of the cohen gadol would give them food and clothing, so they would feel content living in arei miklat, and they wouldn’t pray for her son’s death. The question is, arei miklat is like a prison. The murderers are forbidden to take one step out of the arei miklat. Was the food and clothing that the cohen gadol’s mother sent them sufficient, that they weren’t interested in leaving anymore? Wouldn’t they still pray for the cohen gadol’s death? Furthermore, why was the cohen gadol’s mother so afraid of their tefillos? Apparently, these unintentional murderers weren’t the greatest tzaddikim, as they have this grave sin on their shoulders. The answer is, when one prays with all his heart, his prayers are effective. It doesn’t matter who you are, if you pray with all your heart, the tefillos bear fruit. The cohen gadol’s mother was aware of that, and therefore afraid of their tefillos. So she would supply them with food and clothing. The people in arei miklat still wanted to leave, but the food and clothing made living there a drop more bearable. Now, even if they pray for the cohen gadol to die, they won’t daven with a complete heart.
The Gemara (Yoma 53:) states that when the cohen gadol was in the Kodesh Kadashim on Yom Kippur, he would pray, and one of his prayers was that Hashem shouldn’t listen to the tefillos of travelers when they daven that it shouldn’t rain. Why was this prayer so important? Why did it have to be said in the Kodesh Kadashim, on Yom Kippur, by the cohen gadol no less? It’s because when one travels, and it begins to rain, he feels helpless (especially if his merchandise is getting ruined) and he knows that he has nowhere to turn but to Hashem. Therefore his prayers are very powerful. Only the prayers of the cohen gadol on Yom Kippur, in the Kodesh Kadashim, could prevent those prayers from being answered. Because when one knows that no one can help other than Hashem, he places all his heart into the tefillah, and he prays sincerely.
Reb Eliyashav’s mother was childless for several years after her marriage. She and her husband, Reb Avraham, traveled a distance of two weeks to the medical center in Vienna to find a remedy, so they could bear children. But the doctors told her, “There’s nothing we can do.” Her hopes were shattered. But she was strong and she didn’t cry on her trip home. She didn’t want to make a scene in front of strangers. When she came home to Humla, she went to the silo where she could be alone, and she cried copiously. Then she went home. Her father (author of Leshem) saw that her eyes were red. He asked her about that. She gave an excuse, but her father wanted to know the real reason. She admitted that the doctors didn’t find a solution for her. She held back from crying for two weeks and now she poured her tears out. The Leshem told her, “It states (Tehillim 145:18), Hashem is close to those who pray to Hashem with truth. How does one pray to Hashem truthfully? When one is in a situation like yours, and knows that there’s nowhere to turn to, other than to Hashem, that is a true prayer. At these times, Hashem is close and listens to your prayers…” A year later, she gave birth to Reb Eliyashav zt’l, who enlightened the world with his Torah.
When one prays for a healing, he often thinks perhaps a doctor will help me. He doesn’t feel totally reliant on Hashem, and he doesn’t pray with full concentration. But when one knows that only Hashem can help, that is when you pray with all your heart; that is when you say a perfect prayer; and such prayers bring about wonders.
Psalms (107) discusses four categories of people who pray at a time of distress, and Hashem saves them. They are: People lost in a desert; those traveling in a stormy sea; the ill; the imprisoned. The Malbim (107:6) takes an analytical look at these verses and shows differences between the people who were lost in a desert or who were at sea in contrast to the people who are ill or who are imprisoned. About those who crossed a desert, and those who sailed a stormy sea, the verse states, they shouted to Hashem, which represents a heartfelt, intense prayer. The result was, Hashem saved them. Whereas, for the ill and for the imprisoned, the verse states that they also shouted to Hashem, but it isn’t as a profound prayer. The result was also a lesser salvation, as it states, Hashem saved them, but it wasn’t a full salvation. We can explain that when people are thirsty, and lost in a desert, and similarly people at sea in the midst of a storm that threatens to throw them into the ocean, they know that no one can save them other than Hashem. Where should they turn to, if not to Hashem? That prayer is therefore profound and powerful and the result is a complete salvation. However, those who are ill pray, but they also trust that medicine and doctors might help them. Similarly, people in jail think that a good lawyer or a compassionate judge might help them win their freedom. Their prayers are on the level of a lower type of salvation than those lost in the desert or traveling in a stormy sea.
Siddur Rokeiach writes, “From the time the Beis HaMikdash was destroyed, Hakadosh Baruch Hu doesn’t give goodness to Bnei Yisrael without prayer.”
The Gemara says that prayer stands in the highest places in the world, but people don’t respect it. My father zt’l, explained that although people believe in prayer, and they cherish prayer, but to some extent they don’t believe that their prayers are effective, and therefore they don’t put enough effort into their prayers.
This lesson is also alluded to in the following Gemara (Brachos 5), which says, “One should always battle with the yetzer hara. If he succeeds, all is well. If not, he should learn Torah… If he succeeds, it is good. If he fails [and the yetzer hara is still overcoming him] he should read Shema. If this also doesn’t work, he should remind himself of the day of death.” For kriyas Shema is a place of refuge, where we can be protected from the yetzer hara.
When someone murders someone by accident, he must go to exile, to one of the city of refuge, and he must remain there until the cohen gadol dies, for that’s when he attains his atonement. Some will be in city of refuge for a long time, while others will be there for maybe just a day or two, depending on when the cohen gadol dies, after they are convicted.
The Noam Megadim writes in the name of the Mishnas Chasidim (I Shmuel 20:26) if someone says that matters happened by chance, that person is impure. He lacks the fundamental awareness that everything is planned by Hashem.
The Sefer Chasidim (186) states, “There are people who live solely because of others who benefit from him.” Heaven keeps him alive, because people need him.